Alzheimer's disease is manifested by the destruction of brain cells, partlydue to accumulation of amyloid-beta (Aβ) protein in the brain. Alzheimer's disease progresses in stages and gradually deteriorates the faculties of memory, reasoning, judgment and speech, as well as an ability to carry out simple tasks.
Parkinson's disease is manifested by the destruction of a specialized brain cells, known as the dopaminergic neurons. Loss of dopaminergic neurons lead to clinical symptoms including, but not limited to, the loss of motor control. The cause of onset of Parkinson's disease is not known.
Depression or major depressive disorder is also a disease of brain. The diagnosis is based on the patient's self-reporting experiences including low mood, low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in various activities.
Epilepsy is a neurological disorder of the brain. Patients with epilepsy suffer from frequent, unpredictable seizures. An epileptic episode is marked by an abnormally increased neuronal activity in the brain.
Multiple sclerosis is manifested by the inflammation of the myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and the spinal cord. Demyelination leads to, over time, the loss of various physical and cognitive functions.
Mania is a state of abnormally elevated or irritable mood, often lasting for a week or more. Patients suffering from manic episode have been treated with drugs targeting on neurotransmission.
Lou Gehrig's disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a form of motor neuron disease manifested by the degeneration of neurons in the spinal cord. Patients suffering from the disease experience muscle atrophy, weakness, and breathing difficulties.
Mild cognitive impairment (MCI, also known as incipient dementia, or isolated memory impairment) is a brain-function syndrome involving the onset and evolution of cognitive impairments beyond those expected based on the age and education of the individual, but which are not significant enough to interfere with their daily activities. It is often found to be a transitional stage between normal aging and dementia. Although MCI can present with a variety of symptoms, when memory loss is the predominant symptom it is termed “amnestic MCI” and is frequently seen as a prodromal stage of Alzheimer's disease. Studies suggest that these individuals tend to progress to probable Alzheimer's disease at a rate of approximately 10% to 15% per year.
Multi-infarct dementia is one type of vascular dementia. Vascular dementia is the second most common form of dementia after Alzheimer's disease (AD) in older adults. Multi-infarct dementia (MID) is thought to be an irreversible form of dementia, and its onset is caused by a number of small strokes or sometimes, one large stroke preceded or followed by other smaller strokes. The term refers to a group of syndromes caused by different mechanisms all resulting in vascular lesions in the brain. Early detection and accurate diagnosis are important, as vascular dementia is at least partially preventable.
Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), also known under a variety of other names including Lewy body dementia, diffuse Lewy body disease, cortical Lewy body disease, and senile dementia of Lewy type, is a type of dementia closely allied to both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases. It is characterized anatomically by the presence of Lewy bodies, clumps of alpha-synuclein and ubiquitin protein in neurons, detectable in post-mortem brain biopsies. Lewy Body dementia affects 1.3 million individuals in the United States alone.
Neprilysin is an enzyme that degrades amyloid beta peptide. Deficiency of neprilysin accelerates the extracellular accumulation of amyloid. An increase in neprilysin expression reduces Aβ peptides.
Intracellular Adhesion Molecule-1 (ICAM-1) is a membrane glycoprotein encoded by the ICAM1 gene. Mice deficient of ICAM1 gene developed normally, were fertile, and had a moderate granulocytosis, but exhibited impaired neutrophil emigration to chemical stimulus and abnormalities in inflammatory responses.